Greg Janney's 2008 escort of Gold Star dad John Wroblewski to site in Ramadi where his son, USMC 2Lt J.T. Wroblewski, ten other Marines, and a Navy Corpsman were killed in an ambush on 6 April 2004. This first visit and memorial service at the actual site in Iraq was to honor all twelve men of 2/4 Marines lost that day.
Iraq's reconstruction, security, and the religious genocide of Iraq's native Christians are also featured.

About Me

Professional photographer since 1985, I specialize in aerial, commercial, corporate, military, USDA photography of National Forests, event photography, and am also honored to have the chance to photograph families, reunions, seniors, and weddings. My Iraq 2008 trip was my second independent embed assignment in Iraq.
I am currently writing a book, "A Father's Journey to Iraq" detailing my 2 trips to Iraq with Gold Star father John Wroblewski.

08 January 2010

U.S. mainstream media outlets seem to be hesitant to use seasoned/experienced photojournalists with U.S. military embed experience lately. Why?

1) Cheaper: It is cheaper for MSM to pay UPI a small fee for "wire reports" from "local sources" (foreign media personnel whose sources may or may not be verifiable.)
2) Less liability: Using foreign media (local sources) also absolves the media outlet from defending the information if it is questioned later.
3) U.S. military is still very supportive of indie photojournalists, but is anyone listening back home?

Yes, military families and supporters stay involved. Many citizens have forgotten about our troops overseas. These brave troops have completed multiple deployments since 2003. Both they and their families are suffering the effects of multiple 12 - 15 month long deployments.

I am planning for a military embed in Afghanistan soon. When it happens depends upon finding a media outlet that will help defray expenses and publish the images and story, and military logistics.

In the meantime, I will become more involved in the milblogging community via milblogging.com this year to let you know what is happening as often as I can. Here is a link to my profile on milblogging.com: